Eleven
by umk
Summary: Count your blessings Levy, you never know how many you may have left.
1. Chapter 1

**E**_L_**E**_V_**E**_N_

Challenge: Write in a setting that is completely unfamiliar to you.

* * *

><p>Crystal clear waters, a raspberry sunrise painting the cerulean sky, and a gleaming, polished surfboard were all I needed in the morning.<p>

Sure, most everybody awakens to the sound of alarm clocks buzzing obnoxiously and a bowl of soggy cereal, but not me.

I awaken to the sound of crashing waves, desperately grabbing at the shore, making the sand silky smooth and the rocks burnish clearly.

Being an island girl is fantastic.

So there I was, leisurely afloat about fifty meters offshore squeezing droplets of salty water out of my sky-blue hair.

Life on Destiny Islands, was, for me…perfect.

All up until about today.

I had just finished my early morning surf, the sun at its peak in the sky and I was a leaf in the wind, not a care in the world because _by gosh_ nothing smells better than the sea and the morning air all mixed together until all you can feel is the swift majesty of the ocean.

And it was Wednesday morning, not usually a morning I would enjoy so thoroughly, but hey, it was _summer _for god's sakes, and there is quite literally nothing more fantastic than summer living on a house beside the beach.

Too bad that this summer, something would change.

This summer, I would meet _him _and my entire world would be tossed into a mixing bowl and frankly, get ass-fucked by a wire whisk.

Thanks a lot.

I glided out of the surf, my hands barely dipping into the water as I skated across the surface, not making a single sound.

My dad would be up soon, I knew how much he disliked my adrenaline junky _leanings_, but he was alright with me surfing, as long as I stayed in the vicinity of the house.

But what he doesn't know wouldn't kill him, right?

"Levy, you're getting water all over the floor." My dad said, his face buried in the newspaper. He didn't even have to look up to know that I had my wet suit on, and I was indeed leaving a trail of seawater behind me.

"Sorry dad," I apologized quickly, yanking a spare towel (because honestly they were littered all over the house) off of the counter and plunging my face into its bristly softness.

"Would you mind going down to the market? I need some fruit for the ho`olaule`a* tonight, I promised Jude I'd make kabobs…" Dad said a bit sheepishly, lowering the paper and getting a good look at me.

"Uh…yeah. Lucy and I were gonna go down and look at the shop anyway." I agreed, referring to the surf shop that I frequented, a bit obsessively, actually.

"Great, I have a list over there," dad said nonchalantly, pointing to a crumpled piece of paper on the lower counter.

I nodded, retrieving the list and replacing it with my towel.

"Ok, I'm gonna go. I'll be back I time for the ho`olaule`a*****," I said before I launched into my room and threw on some actual clothes. (***celebration)**

I chose a breezy white top with dark blue seaming, and itty-bitty jean shorts that hugged my legs in all the right places. Before I left, I made sure to stuff the crumpled up list into my back pocket and drag a brush through my salty locks. I had made the mistake of forgetting to brush my hair after a surf, and the result was horrendous.

"Pa`ahana nõ au, Lev!" My dad shouted as I chucked the loose screen door shut.

"_Don't forget , Lev!"_

"Aloha Au Ia 'Oe," I shouted back fondly.

_"__Goodbye, I love you!"_

My ratty old truck was loosely parked in front of my house. My lame parking job wasn't really a problem, the nearest neighbor was a while down the way, so nobody was there to complain except for my dad.

I jammed the key into the ignition after I had got in, the awful sound of a dying car was heard before actually starting up.

First stop- Lucy's.

Lucy wasn't a native, she moved here three years ago on a retreat for her dad's work, but they both loved it so much they decided to get a house here and Lucy stays six months of the year.

Her house is only a few blocks down, certainly a much nicer house than mine, but it still resided along the shore and Lucy, like me, was a fervent surfer, although I hate to say that my skill far surpassed hers.

It wasn't her fault, she's still newish.

When my car feebly crawled up Lucy's winding drive, I didn't even have to honk before she was outside and ready to go.

"Ick, Lev I can hear your truck from a mile away. It sounds like a dying St. Bernard." Lucy said as she swung her bag into the back of the truck and jumped in beside me. I made no effort to tell her that I had no idea what a St. Bernard was, but I figured it was probably a large animal of some sort.

Lucy does a lot of that, making comments that I don't really understand. Mainland stuff, she calls it, with almost a sour look on her face. I can tell that she prefers the islands so much more, I mean, who wouldn't?

"Hey, do you mind if we pick up Natty? I told him he could tag along." Lucy said while smoothing some berry smelling lip gloss on her lips.

"As long as he doesn't mind riding in the back." I gestured to the back of my truck and Lucy laughed.

'You know very well he doesn't give a shit about that," Lucy said breezily. That was one thing I didn't like about Lucy, she cursed. I didn't like cursing, it felt…immoral. I don't know, it's just my opinion.

But there was one thing about Lucy that certainly was captivating- her spontaneity. It was like everything she did was so wonderful and new it just made you want to stand right next to her and see how everything played out.

Which I guess was why Natsu was so far under her spell not even the apocalypse could snap him out of her daze.

I pulled up in front of his house with a shaky screech.

"Oi! Natsu!" I called. Natsu was also a native, and I had known him ever since was a kid. Then again, I don't remember much from when I was a kid, but I also have a pretty bad memory over all, so it's not really a concern for me.

"Uh, be right there!" Natsu yelled, his pink hair popping up from inside.

"Hurry up!" Lucy whooped, sticking the front half of her body out the open window.

Well, I guess you could call it open, considering there wasn't really a window there in the first place.

"Yeah, yeah." Natsu said as he emerged from his house with his bag slung around his shoulder.

"You got tanner Natty," Lucy commented lightly as Natsu hopped in the back of my truck.

"Really?" Natsu asked brightly, blushing a little bit. Lucy smiles genuinely, and nods.

"Yeah, it looks nice! You've been tanning?"

I tune out their conversation for a bit, honestly it's a bit disgusting to listen to them flirt back and forth. Just kiss already!

But then I'd be a major third wheel…

Gross.

I pulled into the market lopsidedly, a small bump rocking the entire vehicle.

"Kya! Levy!" Lucy whined, rubbing her forehead which was now sporting a red mark from ricocheting off of the dash.

"Ops." I said stupidly, yanking the key out of the ignition and shoving it into my pocket while simultaneously getting back the list of fruit.

"Ok guys, here's what we need. Bananas, guavas, coconuts, pineapples, lilikoi, and mangoes." I finished, squinting so that I could read my father's messy scrawl.

"Nat and I can take Bananas, guavas and coconuts," Lucy suggested, tugging on Natsu's arm and subtly hinting to me that she wanted to be alone with him.

"Ok, I'll take the rest," I said with a wry smile and a slight eyebrow raise.

"Mahalo nui loa Levy!"

"_Thank you very much Levy!"_

Lucy yelled exuberantly. I cringed a little bit, Lucy was still learning the native language, her vocabulary was alright, but her pronunciation was two clicks from terrifying.

"Ok, pineapples, lilikoi, and mangoes…" I mumbled to myself, crumpling the list back up and sticking it back into my seemingly bottomless pocket.

The pineapple stand, run by local vendor Kai, was extremely cheap. I gladly pulled out my bag and leafed through some cash while making small talk.

"Aloha Levy, are you getting hala kahiki for the ho`olaule`a today?" He asked casually, filling my bag with the correct quantity of pineapples.

Right, the ho`olaule`a is an annual celebration that marks the beginning of summer, practically the whole island is invited, and it takes place at Honu beach, which a kilometer or so from my house.

"You know it, do you know where I can get lilikoi?" I asked politely.

"Yeah, Jet and Droy have their tent set up right over there, they've got every color of the fruity rainbow." He smiled and I returned the favor.

"Mahalo Kai, Aloha." I waved goodbye to him and set myself forward to my last, and most begrudging stop, Jet and Droy's booth.

Both mainlanders came around when Lucy did, and their small business was well known for cheap fruit and often bad services. They were both a bit…finicky, so to say.

Not to mention completely obsessed with me.

"Levy, Levy! Come to our stand!" Droy shouted.

"Yes! The fruit is great today!" Jet held up a mango and rubbed it on his cheek creepily.

"Hey guys, just lilikoi and mangoes for me…" I said weakly, pushing my bag towards them.

Jet proceeded to chat my ear off while Droy stocked my bag. Honestly, I won't really listening at all.

But here's when it all came down.

"Eleven."

I froze, my entire body going onto lock down. The voice was almost raspy, clearly a male's, but…how did he know that?

I whipped around to see who had spoken, and was quite surprised when I did so.

An extremely tall, well built man was staring me down with cold ruby eyes, and doting metal piercings flicked haphazardly across his chiseled face. He was handsome, no doubt, in an odd way…

His long black hair was pulled back by a bandana and being held together in a loose knot, but god, his _eyes. _They were triggering alarm bells all over my body and I couldn't help but be completely _fascinated _by his effect on me.

"Can we help you?" Droy asked rudely, plopping a lilikoi in my bag.

He ignored Droy, and repeated what he had said.

"Eleven…"

If it was possible, my eyes got wider. There was no way, no _way_ he could know…

"Eleven…" He said, almost proudly. Flashing a sly grin he walked towards me and I found myself, yet again, to be completely frozen.

"Levy? What's going on?" Jet asked, panicked. The man stopped inches in front of me, his cold, calculating red eyes completely focused on my brown ones, like he was looking for something. Recognition? Perhaps…?

"Uh um…do I know you?" I asked meekly, taking a small step backwards.

His face fell instantly, dramatically. "You…you don't…"

I shook my head slowly, as if some sort of confirmation that I had no idea who he was.

"Lev…" He trailed off, taking a small step back as well, dragging his hands through his hair in frustration.

"I'm…sorry," I said, the heartbroken look in his eyes was devastating to see.

"You…what do you mean? How do you not remember me?" He demanded, suddenly angry and in my face.

"I told you! I'm sorry, I don't think I've ever seen you in my life…but…" I was cut off by his cry of exasperation.

"I've been searching for you Lev! I promised I'd protect you and-"

His voice cracked and he kicked a crate so hard it actually _shattered._

"How do you-"

"Do you remember anything?" He hissed, his fists clenched as he refused to meet my gaze.

"Hey! Would you just listen to me!?" I screeched. He stopped what he was doing and looked at me incredulously.

"How do you know my real name?" I asked, my voice hardly above a whisper.

"I know you Lev. I know that you were born on September 11th, 1995, you love to read, and you always correct me when I pronounce a word wrong, and-"

"Stop! Stop it!" I shouted, surprising myself with the urgency in my voice. He stopped immediately, and backed down a bit.

"I don't know you! I have never seen you before! Leave me alone!" I screamed, taking my bag and running as fast as I could in the opposite direction.

Ok, so maybe it was a bit rash, but if some random guy came up to you and told you he knew you and he knew your embarrassing real name and everything…well…you'd scream and run too.

As far as I was concerned, that never happened.

I never met that man in the market, and he didn't know my name. He walked straight past me and didn't say a word. That's exactly how it went.

If only that could've been true.


	2. Chapter 2

Out of breath, I stumbled into my truck and tried to stop myself from hyperventilating.

"Hey Levy! We got the fruit!" Lucy and Natsu dance forward, with Natsu of course wielding the heaving bags of fruits in his arms.

"Oh, uh…that's good." I said awkwardly, teasing my hair and nervously glancing behind them to make sure that no strange men were following me.

"Mhm, this years ho`olaule`a is going to be so much fun! You know I heard Juvia is going to dance. God, I wish I could dance like her, she is _so _good!" Lucy gushed, her envy inevitable. I didn't blame her, Juvia was so invested in dance it would be a miracle if she was mediocre.

"You're a good dancer Lucy!" Natsu added quickly, never missing a chance to compliment her.

"Don't lie Natty, I look like a dying goose when I try to dance!" Lucy wailed. She's such a drama queen, it was especially funny when she was trying _not _to be dramatic.

I hopped in my truck and tilted the rearview mirror back, my paranoia of being watched creeping up my spine like an ice cube.

_No._

I saw him. He was in the rearview mirror, watching me. I shuddered, pulling my gaze away from the mirror and watching Lucy and Natsu get in.

"No, remember that time when we had a dance off with Laxus and Mira? You danced great then!"

"Oh my god, _don't remind me_! That was _so _embarrassing!"

I couldn't help it, I glanced into the mirror again.

He was gone.

But that didn't soothe my uneasiness, how the heck did that guy know my name? And my date of birth?!

Oh my god, what if I have a stalker?! Lucy once had a stalker, at least, that's what she told me. Somehow, I think she may have been exaggerating a bit.

"Hey Levy, we forgot to go to the surf shop," Lucy mentioned, her tone slightly frightened. It was most definitely worrying that I forgot to go, I have an unhealthy obsession with the surf shop, they've swallowed my life's savings and more.

"Oh yeah, guess we did." I said blankly. I could already guess the scared expressions that Natsu and Lucy were exchanging back there.

"Are you feeling alright Levy?" Natsu asked jokingly, placing his hand on my forehead. A dangerous act, it temporarily distracted me from the road and I swerved to the left dramatically to prove my point.

"Fine." I assured, but I could tell that it left no impact. Lucy whispered something in Natsu's ear and I rolled my eyes.

"Levy, do you wan to stop for some ice shave~" Lucy asked slyly.

"Nah, I got some yesterday." I lied. The truth was, I just wanted to get home and ask my dad some questions…

Lucy gasped. I rolled my eyes, yet again.

"Levy! Have you been possessed?" Natsu asked, leaning forward so the truck creaked and groaned under his weight.

"Yes. I sum daemon." I said in my best exorcist voice. Natsu looked confused. I guess he just doesn't know Latin.

_Nobody knows Latin Levy. It's a dead language. _My brain reminded me annoyingly. Whatever.

I pulled up in front of Natsu's house and forcibly kicked him out.

"See ya at the ho`olaule`a Natsu! A hui hou kakou!" I shouted, my voice extremely pitchy and weird as I wheeled away.

"What did you say to him?" Lucy asked.

"I said goodbye." I said tersely. Lucy not knowing the language after like…three years of being here was annoying sometimes. Especially something as basic as 'until next time'.

"I wish I could speak the language too." Lucy said sadly, resting her head on the tops of her hands as she watched the surf go by sadly. I instantly felt bad about what I thought about her, I wouldn't really know how hard it was to learn a new language.

"You'll get it." I chastised, my voice much softer than before.

"I hope so. You and Natty always have secret conversations." She grumbled. That, I wasn't really sorry about. I knew Natsu way before Lucy, and sometimes I got a little jealous about how much time they spent together. I knew it was selfish to think that way, but I just did. And I didn't want Lucy to hurt Natsu, he didn't deserve that.

"Yeah, we talk a lot of crap about you." I joked, and Lucy retaliated by pinching the back of my neck.

"Hm. Save me some kabobs for the party? You always get there early." Lucy wondered just as I pulled into her driveway lopsidedly.

"Yeah, sure." I promised. Lucy jumped out and waved goodbye to me, her blonde hair swooshing like a satin curtain as she walked back into her massive house.

I drove home as fast as humanly possible, which for me, was pretty dang fast. Seventy miles an hour, if you want statistics.

Dangerous, yes, but time consuming? No way.

I slammed the car door shut when I got home, eager to ask my dad some questions about my childhood. That guy obviously recognized me, maybe he did know me at one point. I grabbed the bags of fruit and balanced them skillfully in my hands as I walked into my house.

"Makuakane, where are you?"

"_Dad, where are you?"_

"In here, kaikamahine."

I walked into my dad's office, where he was bust scrawling dates and numbers onto some plans.

"Ah, you got all the fruit. Good, good, I've got to get to work over the imu." He said, bustling past me and walking into the kitchen.

"Dad, I need to ask you some-"

"And you got everything? Mangoes, bananas, pineapple, coconut-"

"_Yes _dad, now would you just-"

"Mm, alright, could you grab me the kabobs? I put them up in the-"

"_Dad!_" I protested, sometimes it was like he could see right through me.

"Hm?" He asked. Huh, just as I thought, he didn't hear a word I said.

"I need to ask you some questions." I restated, setting the bags of fruit down on the counter next to one of my beach towels.

"Ok, fire away." My dad said, his eyebrows crinkled in a middle-aged manlike fashion.

"…I was born and raised here, right?"

My dad stopped. "Of course you were, what kind of question is that?"

"In this house?" I added, every drop of information was important.

"Yes, in this house. What is this about?" My dad asked with suspicion, narrowing his dark gray eyes in confusion and worry.

"…What was I like as a kid?" I fired, disappointed in the lack of good info I was retaining.

"You were…I dunno, annoying and bratty." He said, almost as if it was supposed to be a joke, but his tone and eyes were still worried and afraid. "Levy, what is this about?"

"I…just don't remember much from my childhood, and it was bothering me. That's all." I said, not meaning to sound so poisonous. "Uh, I'm gonna go catch some waves, I'll be back in time for the ho`olaule`a!"

I shot upstairs to my room, pulling my wetsuit off of its drying post and wasting no time in shedding my uncomfortably adorable outfit that I had been sporting all day.

Thank God. If I had to wait any longer to even dip my feet in the ocean, I would've lost my mind.

I ran out to the shore like an excited six year old, splashing my feet around absorbing the rays of the sun through the dull heat of the water.

God, there was absolutely_ nothing_ better than the ocean.

I went back up to my house to grab my board, just as my dad came out to work on the kabobs over the imu.

I dragged it back to the water, skillfully avoiding any conversation that might sprout from my father and I's sort of dispute.

I really don't know what I was thinking, mid-day really isn't an ideal wave time. Mornings at dawn are the very best, but what I really was looking for was just the calm soothing effect floating on the surf had on me.

I slid my board in the water, and listened to the light slapping sound of the waves lapping under the tip of the board.

I swam out as deep as I could, as slowly as possible, until my house was a speck and my mind was at ease.

_I don't remember him. I don't remember anything._

All I can remember is warm summer days on the beach with Natsu…how old was I then? Twelve? Eleven? I honestly can't remember.

_"__I've been searching for you Lev! I promised I'd protect you and-"_

Searching for me? He certainly didn't look like a native. Tall, lightly tanned like Natsu and I, not the warm honey color most people here were. And those piercings, I've never seen anything like them. He _had _to be a mainlander. But how would a mainlander know me?

Each question made the situation worse and worse. It was like a web, each time I buried myself further and further I'd only become more trapped than before, sticky threads clinging to my skin like secrets and lies from the past.

Oh!

I smiled, the topic of my past completely dropped to the back of my brain as my hand that had been dipped in the water swayed lightly.

It was unusual to have moderately sized waves now, but…

Wait…

The sun, it was looking…westward…

Crap! It's almost sundown!

I surged forward, using the power of the waves and my arms to push myself closer to the shore.

_Dad's gonna kill e if I'm late! I'm never late!_

I dragged my board back up to my house, my feet sticky with miniscule grains of sand. I decided against changing into actual clothes, not enough time.

I grabbed a towel and a spare mango that my dad hadn't used for kabobs and I ran to my truck.

I didn't really mind that I got the seat all wet, my truck really couldn't get any crappier.

So, there I went, shoeless, cloth less, soaking wet, my hair a mess, and a mango caught between my teeth, to the island's biggest celebration of the year.

Just another day in paradise.

Twelve seconds and a smashed headlight later, I made it to Honu beach, and to my disappointment, pretty much everyone was already there.

_Just smile and wave Levy, who cares if you look like you got run over by your own truck?_

And that's exactly what I did- I waved and acted like it was just another day in the life of Levy Mcgarden.

Aside from the few befuddled stares and confused murmurs my appearance got, it was a success for me.

"Good _lord _Levy, what the hell?"

Ah, Lucy. She's just…so _pleasant._

Lucy was wielding two of my dad's kabobs (she was quite fond of them) and Natsu by her side. Nobody was surprised by this.

"I lost track of time." Was my lame and overused excuse.

"More like you lost track of life, you look god-awful." Lucy said, pretending to cry into Natsu's shoulder.

"Aw, Levy doesn't look _that _bad." Natsu said earnestly. Whoa, he actually had his own opinion for once? It must be a blue moon today.

"Thanks Nat. Have you seen my-"

_Oh my god no._

My eyes probably popped right out of their sockets. He was _right there. _Studying me. Not even in the creepy way (I'm not saying it wasn't creepy, it totally was, but it was like he was…confused.) like he couldn't tell what to think of me.

He's just as confused as I am.

"Levy? What are you looking at?" Lucy asked, following my line of sight.

"Just looking for my dad!" I interrupted, grabbing her shoulder harshly and dragging her backwards.

"Oh, well he's over-"

"Thanks, bye!" I said hysterically, walking backwards before taking off into a sprint.

I need some air. Is it hot out here? It's really hot out here. I'm gonna pass out, oh lord…

"Oi."

_No! No, this is __**not **__what I needed right now!_

I turned around, my knuckles poised against my wetsuit. "_What _do you want?"

He paused, his eyes scanning my disheveled appearance up and down. "I don't get it."

"You don't get what?" I huffed, not ready to believe any of this guys crap at any time.

"How can you not remember? It's obviously you, and how did you even get here?" He asked. Huh. He really _was _just as confused as me.

"Look, I don't know what you're talking about. I've lived here my whole life, and unless _you _have-"

He surprised me by laughing out loud. "You…you haven't lived here your whole life."

"_Excuse _you sir, but I think I know a lot more about my life than you do." I said, jabbing his broad chest with one of my sharp fingernails.

"Obviously not, if you don't remember me." He corrected. Annoying, he's so annoying.

I scoffed. "Do you even have _any _proof that you actually know me? How do I know you're not just some crazy stalker?"

His lips pressed into a tight line. "I don't got any proof on me right now, but why don't you look up the Magnolia adoption clinic? I think you'll see exactly what you're looking for."

"What? That's all? Aren't you going to…hey! Where are you going?" I asked as he began to walk away.

"Come find me once you have doubts about whatever lies you've been fed 'bout bein' here your whole life." He yelled behind him as his figure faded into the crowd.

"That's crazy! You make absolutely no sense!" I screamed back at him, drawing in a few freaked out glances from islanders.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night _Eleven._" Were his last words before disappearing completely.

I didn't think I'd ever felt _so angry _in my entire life. Who did this guy think he was?

But still, the words Magnolia adoption clinic hung in the air like laundry hanging from a line.

Who is this guy, and how does he know so much about me?


End file.
